Mayor Wheeler Responds to Letter from Portland Police Association

PORTLAND, OR: Mayor Ted Wheeler issued the following statement in response to today’s message from the Portland Police Association:

“Our city and state have a shared history of racial injustice, from our state's original constitution – which contained an exclusion law banning black people from living here – to the hardships faced by those in Vanport before and after the flood, to the disparate outcomes for people of color in our legal system. I have spoken about this shared history at length. I have never called into question the values and beliefs of our rank and file police officers. I have tremendous respect for the hard work they do every day in the community. At a time that calls for a shared vision and unity of purpose regarding the future of the Portland Police Bureau, today’s letter from the Portland Police Association is needlessly inflammatory and divisive. We are conducting a national search, fulfilling a commitment I made to the community last year. Anyone applying for the job should be fully aware of our state's history, and prepared to join me in ensuring that this history is just that... in the past.”